Photos by Dylan Simmons
Vada Vada: “total freedom of expression without boundaries or guidelines of any sort.”
“Vada Vada” as a concept — first coined in 2011 by twin brothers Wyatt and Fletcher Shears of The Garden — has grown to encapsulate various hard-to-define sounds and ideas. For instance, it also refers to The Garden’s extended universe of musicians they associate themselves with, bound together under their self-started label, Vada Vada Records.
For the first time ever, the entirety of the Vada Vada collective was brought together for a six-act live show with thousands of devoted fans as their witnesses. Producing music for over a decade, The Garden (and friends) have accumulated a niche, cult-like fanbase along the way. The audience tonight is as diverse as the artists themselves, and composed largely of fans from local punk and alternative scenes. Notably, many queer adolescents have also flocked to The Garden’s music due to the band’s “be yourself” mantra, personified by their androgynous style and their adoption of punk rock’s aesthetics and progressive ideals.
Whatever its true meaning may be, everyone in the audience tonight knows in their heart what Vada Vada means to them.
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3l3d3p
3l3d3p (pronounced “LDP”) is Marina Thompson: DJ, multimedia artist, and girlfriend of Fletcher Shears. Though her name isn’t yet widely recognized, you might know her from her viral track “Ibitbt” if you spent any time on TikTok in 2020. Still, 3l3d3p is criminally underrated. Her opening DJ set quickly stirs up the crowd, effortlessly getting the audience jumping and moshing. Her stage presence is as electrifying as her sound, which strongly emanates hyperpop and glitchcore. Arguably, her captivating performance feels better suited to a later set time to really amp up the crowd before the biggest acts.
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Slater
Next to perform is Slater, the Shears’ high school friend. His tracks stand out the most from the rest of the collective, as they lean more 2000s pop than punk or alternative. Hailing from Orange County (same as the Shears twins), the beachy, laidback Southern California influence on his sound is apparent.
One unique, binding aspect of the Vada Vada collective is that most of its members are from Southern California. As an OC kid myself, I discovered the group of artists as a frequent concertgoer among SoCal’s alternative scene. Thus, despite the jester makeup (a Garden concert tradition), I can spot many familiar faces among tonight’s crowd from past Vada Vada shows. Arguably, the Vada Vada fanbase is strongest in SoCal, as much of their audience discovered the underground collective like I did: in the local concert scene. Consequently, the energy within the Shrine is especially high tonight, even more so than at a typical hometown show.
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Cowgirl Clue
Cowgirl Clue is DJ and singer Ashley Clue. The only Vada Vada member hailing from out-of-state, Cowgirl Clue originally comes from Texas, and was brought into the collective by her boyfriend, Wyatt Shears. Her sound, which I can best describe as country hyperpop, is uniquely genre-bending. She departs far from traditional country music, but elements like the slide guitar and her cowgirl-chic attire serve to both ground her in her roots and cultivate her unique brand, distinct from other electronic artists.
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Enjoy
Enjoy is the solo project of one half of The Garden: Wyatt Shears. Remarkably, both the twins’ side projects sound vastly different from one another and from their shared band. Enjoy’s sound is thoroughly unique, alternative, punk-adjacent, and ripe with funky bass lines. It’s more upbeat than The Garden, and features bizarre samples that contribute to his distinct style.
His set features hits like “Small Car With Big Wheels” and “I’ve Wasted So Much Time” with support from a larger band that brings new life to the older tracks. My personal favorite off the setlist is “Dear John Letter,” a cover of ‘80s punk band Agression that feels more angsty and emotive than Enjoy’s typical tracks.
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Puzzle
Following his brother, Fletcher Shears takes the stage to perform as his own solo project, Puzzle. His tracks are mostly electronic, in contrast to Enjoy’s more traditional, strings-based sound. Consequently, his performance largely consists of singing and drumming over the backing tracks of his original songs. His rhythmic, drums-centered tracks range from upbeat and fast-paced (like “Loose Cannon”) to more stripped-down and moody (like “Foghorn”).
Mid-set, Slater darts back onstage to sing “One Hundred Geese,” a track featuring both artists off Puzzle’s latest record, The Rotten Opera. Their upbeat, boyish energies feed off one another as they sing and bounce around onstage. To the crowd’s delight, Puzzle also debuts “Bankrupt,” an unreleased track from a future project that he briefly teases. Saving the best for last, Puzzle’s biggest track, “I Saw An Angel,” makes for an upbeat, energizing encore.
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The Garden
Finally, the time comes for the biggest act of the night, and the reason for Vada Vada’s existence in the first place: The Garden. The Expo’s large stage is occupied by just the two brothers — Wyatt (on bass and vocals) and Fletcher Shears (on drums and vocals) — but their loud, punk rock tracks fill the room. Their sound is largely inspired by older SoCal punk bands, but uniquely bizarre due to their use of sampling and sound effects — an element shared with Enjoy. Tonight’s setlist is the perfect amalgamation of their extensive discography, from decade-old deep cuts to tracks off their latest EP, Six Desperate Ballads.
For their final song, The Garden performs fan favorite “Thy Mission” with surprise guest Mac DeMarco, who was featured on the track. Despite singing and moshing for hours by now, the crowd’s energy reaches an all-time high for the unexpected guest. Mac DeMarco is a seemingly random collaboration for The Garden, but after hearing his vocals on the track and witnessing his energy tonight, the pairing feels oddly perfect.
After the twins leave the stage, I drift toward the exit amongst a flood of sweaty adolescents with smeared makeup and tousled hair, feeling both exhausted and elated by tonight’s variety show.
Listen to The Garden’s new EP, Six Desperate Ballads, below!
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